After graduating from Smith College in 1970, Shelley decided to take on modeling full-time. Represented by the top model management company, Ford Models Inc., she began her transition from teen model to top model. Her then boyfriend, fashion photographer Steen Svensson, and make-up artist extraordinaire Rick Gillette came up with test shots of Shelley in the early '70s with the hope that the images could get her into the pages of Vogue and Harper's Bazaar - which eventually happened. By the mid-1970s, Revlon creative director David Leddick had Steen shoot Shelley's first Revlon Charlie presentation portfolio and it got her the contract. Her first commercial debuted in 1976; and it was such an immediate and immense hit that by 1977, Charlie became the #1 fragrance in the world (the first American-made international bestseller). With Revlon Charlie, Shelley achieved Supermodel status; and she made more print ads and commercials (with Steen and Rick) for the now phenomenally successful brand.
